Title
Michael Parachutes

Problem Scenario

This info could be useful for skydivers, base jumpers, paratroopers, and military purposes.

Broad Question

Will shape affect descent time of a parachute.

Specific Question

Does parachute shape affect descent time.

Hypothesis

Circle will fall the slowest out of the shapes

Graph of Hypothesis

Variables

Independent Variable: fall time

Dependent Variable:shape

Variables That Need To Be Controlled:

Weather, weight of parachute, and size.

Vocabulary List That Needs Explanation

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General Plan

Four different shapes will be dropped from elevated position where I can control the weather conditions.
The shapes will get dropped several times. The times will get recorded then average to find the over all
drop time. The results will then be graphed and put on the poster board.

Potential Problems And Solutions

weather could be a problem by catching the parachute in the wind or putting a hole in the chute by the rain.
to fix this problem dropping the parachutes from the balcony in the my school will be able to control the weather.

Safety Or Environmental Concerns

Falling off of where I'm going to drop the parachutes from.

Experimental Design

Controlled, manipulated experiment

What is your experimental unit?

Parachute shape drop time.

Number Of Trials:

3

Number Of Subjects In Each trial:

1

Number of Observations:

3

When data will be collected

during class

Where will data be collected?:

at school

Resources and Budget Table

Item	Number needed	Where I will get this	Cost
trash bag	4	home	NA
string		school	NA
100 gram weight	1	school	NA

Detailed Procedure

1. Get resources needed
2. Cut out shapes (shapes have to be about the same area)
3. Prep parachutes
4. Cut parachutes into shape(square, triangle, circle, and diamond)
5. then put strings into holes that are made in parachute
6. Find spot where variables could be controlled
7. Tie 1 pound weight to parachute
8. Drop from spot and have some one record time
9. Add times then average
10. Graph results and put on poster board

Diagram

Photo List

Time Line

3/1- Experiment due
3/7- Analysis due
3/15 - Discussion due
3/22 - poster due
3/29 science fair

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Data Table

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Data Analysis

All Raw Data

See data table

Graphs

Photos

Results

The circle was the fastest to fall as the square was the slowest.Diamond and triangle fell at about the same rate. The circle opened the worst as the triangle opened the best. The square opens just a little worse than the triangle but fell slower than any of the other shapes.

Conclusion

Does parachute shape affect descent time, yes parachute shape does affect descent time. The circle parachute fell at an average of 1.4 seconds while the square parachute fell with an average of 1.76 seconds. The triangle and diamond parachutes fell in between circle and square. The triangle fell at an average of1.46 seconds and the diamond fell at an average of 1.57 seconds. Most of the average fall times were fairly close together.

Discussion
The data stayed consistent within the 1 to 2 second range. The highest fall average was 1.76 as the lowest was 1.4 seconds. The relationship wasn't that strong the shape did a small affect to the drop time. The shapes all fell with very close averages. It would have a stronger relationship if one shape was a lot slower than the others. Yes the question was answered Shape does affect descent time. Shape affects time only slightly other relationships might affect the time more. No collecting the data for the experiment didn't have any problems. Tests of other relationships such as size or material type. These tests will allow designers to figure out the best combo of materials to use for a parachute.

Benefit to Community and/or Science

This data can be used to design better parachutes and for parachute users to have a slower fall. Knowing if shape affects the drop time of a parachute will help designers find the right shape to get the right shape fro the perfect parachute. designers argue about what shape of parachute is better so this information could be useful to solve that problem.

Background Research

A parachute is a device used to slow the descent of a person in free fall from a high elevation.Parachutes are used by a lot of people. Mainly base jumpers, sky divers, and military personnel use the parachute. Many ideas have been created but the first parachute design was made by Leonardo Da Vinci. parachutes have advanced greatly over the years. Parachutes were organically made of silk but are now made out of nylon.
Parachutes are used for many things. Parachutes are used air drop supplies to disaster relief zones if they cant be reached by foot. Parachuted were also used to drop artillery guns during world war 1 so they could be deployed quickly. Parachutes were used to help land early space shuttles. They are still used to slow down space shuttles that land. Parachutes original purpose was to slow the descent of a person who is jumping out of a burning building back in the middle ages.
Parachutes are one of the more commonly used methods of falling out of planes. Although there are other alternatives like wings suits. Base jumpers usually use parachutes. Parachutes are used to catch the wind and slowly float the passenger down to the ground. Wing suits work differently the wing suits catch the wind but glide the passenger through the air. Wing suits are more advanced than parachutes. Wing suits can be use to do tricks like spins but when the user rolls into a ball they will roll in mid air several times until they extend their legs and arms.

Reference

"Parachute." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Feb. 2013. Web. 28 Feb. 2013.
"History of The Parachute." About.com Inventors. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2013.
"What Are Parachutes Made Of? - Answers.Ask.com." What Are Parachutes Made Of? - Answers.Ask.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2013.

Abstract

Shape does affect the descent rate of a parachute. My specific question was did parachute shape affect its descent time. My variables controlled and independent were fall time and shape. The variables that needed to be controlled were weather, weight of parachute, and size. My detailed procedure describes how to do my experiment the exact same way that I did it. I cut the shapes out of trash bags and then punched holes in the areas shown on my diagram. I then went to test my experiment with someone to record the fall times as I dropped them. I then put my data into my data table made a graph of all my raw data and average drop times. My Hypothesis was wrong I had hypothesized that circle would fall the slowest, but I was proven wrong. Square had the slowest average drop time as circle had the slowest. The data is basically saying that you'll have a slower and softer fall with a square of rectangular shape than you would a circular or oval shape.